Citation: For his visionary leadership creating a successful, dynamic company bringing mesostructured zeolites to the refining industry.

Current position: professor of inorganic chemistry, University of Alicante

Education: B.Sc., M.S., and Ph.D., chemistry, University of Alicante

García-Martínez on his biggest research challenge: “I am very interested in the mechanism that allows zeolites to rearrange to incorporate mesoporosity into their structure. We have a lot of data that prove that the zeolite crystals reorganize themselves without dissolving, but the actual mechanism behind this new and puzzling phenomenon is still unclear. I am collaborating with some of the best scientists to solve this problem, but it is a major and exciting challenge that will keep us busy for several years.”

What his colleagues say: “I have been impressed by Javier’s ability to build an excellent team of business and technical employees and advisers.”—Hong-Xin Li, Zeolyst International